In many areas well water contains impurities such as dissolved iron or hydrogen sulfide as well as other gases or minerals which may be objectionable to the consumer. For example, if the water contains dissolved iron it will tend to oxidize when in contact with the air to cause the iron to precipitate. These precipitates frequently cause rust-colored stains which are very difficult to remove from porcelain surfaces such as toilet bowls, sinks and tubs. The hydrogen sulfide is disagreeable because of its characteristic rotten egg odor.
Typically, a home owner may try to eliminate some of these objectionable ingredients from their water supply by the employment of a water softener and filtration system, but such units are at best only marginally satisfactory when used with water supply systems having moderate to high hydrogen sulfide levels.
It has also been proposed in the past to use aeration systems within the home, one such example being shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,193,989. The difficulties with such prior art systems are that they require not only a pump for the well, but an additional pump for delivering the water after aeration. Furthermore, as such systems are typically installed within a home, it is necessary to provide positive ventilation to insure that the hydrogen sulfide fumes are effectively dissipated. Because of the costs of such systems and the inherent difficulties of such systems they have not gained widespread acceptance.
In all prior systems known to applicant the basic premise has been to remove the water from the well with all of the dissolved minerals and gases therein, to treat the water in the home, and then to immediately use the treated water. Such prior art systems require that the treatment system be capable of removing all of the contaminants in a single pass through the system which place increasing demands on the system.